The Resurrection of Noir
by RareNyte
Summary: Once defeated, he was stricken from record and kept a secret and his memories are replaced with that of a happy village life with the very person who defeated him as his father. Now accepted into Beacon, an old friend takes the opportunity to restore him to his former glory. This is the story of how the darkest evil can come from the most unexpected of places... AU Dark Jaune
1. The Awakening

A/N Hi, RareNyte here. This is my first story and I already have the next two chapters completed for the most part, as you can see, this will NOT be a Romance, but there will be hints of it every so often, as this story will instead be focusing on Jaune or Noir as he is truly called and his vow to cleanse this world of all the unworthy blood, starting with the Prince who destroyed his village.

I hope you find this first chapter interesting and I will hopefully release the next chapter soon. Reviews and constructive criticism are gratefully accepted.

* * *

Jaune's POV

"You're improving well, Jaune" My sword was once again knocked aside by her shield.  
"You're still miles ahead" I jumped back as she lunged with her spear.  
"With this kind of progress, you could catch up in a couple months or so..." I took the opportunity and grabbed her spear and attempted to prise it from her.

She saw what I was trying to do and activated her polarity, causing Milo to rush back to her; however I was pulled back with it, resulting with me on top of her, our faces merely inches apart.

"O-Okay Jaune, that's enough for now okay?" The redhead sputtered with an almighty blush covering her face, my face was also quite red.  
"Yeah umm sorry about that Pyrrha" I muttered as I pulled away, picking up my shield that she had forced me to trop earlier on in the spar.  
"Don't worry about it" She assured while picking herself up  
"Now come on, classes start soon"

* * *

I sighed as I sat down for class

_'Even with Pyrrha's training, I still can't get a good hit on her…_

_Still, I have to do my best; she has been going out of her way to help me. Come to think of it, she never said why she was helping me…'_

A big part of me thought the most reasonable answer was that she didn't want me dragging the team down.

I turned around to see her chatting with Blake about last week's assignments. I saw the heart-warming smile that kept me going every day.

A small part of me wanted there to be another reason…

As I was caught up in my musings, I didn't notice the professor's presence before she spoke.

"Hello, I am professor Shinime, filling in for professor Port as he has fallen ill" The substitute introduced herself, she had long white hair that flowed freely to her waist and had light blue eyes that were behind a pair of square glasses, she also wore a purple dress with a white overcoat.

I snapped out of my daydream upon hearing that name._ 'Shinime, why do I feel some sort of connection to that name?'_ I noticed the somehow familiar professor begin to talk again and listened intently.

"Today will be a very special lecture, I have been given permission to talk with you about one of the greatest figures of history, quite recent history to be precise, yet not one of you has heard about it before"  
This further piqued my interest, '_a historical figure that no one knows about? She can't be serious'_

"The mastermind that almost brought the whole of Vale to it's knees, a villain shrouded in so much mystery to the extent of him and his doings being strictly forbidden in modern education, until now" She said with an unnerving smile.  
By this point everyone in the room was leaning in, eager to discover who this mysterious mastermind was, even Cardin looked interested.

"The man that gathered an army of hundreds to bring down our kingdom, the man that spawned fear wherever he set foot, the man that nobody knew behind the mask. That man

Was named Lord Noir"

My eyes widened, 'why do I feel like this?!' My hands started shaking, but I wasn't scared or intimidated like I first thought, I was angry. I had no idea why, but I felt a dark aura surround me as the substitute continued to talk about the man.

"… believed to have been born in a small village, he lived life a normal life with his single dad until his village was burned to ash by not The White Fang or even the Grimm, but humans under the command of one of the rulers of Vale, Prince Solus."

_'Village burnt to ashes…Solus...'_

"He devoted his life to recruiting what remained of the village and even brokering some sort of deal with the White Fang and any gangs he could pay in order to bring down Solus. All of this, under the alias of Lord Noir, he masked his face to hide the fact that he was only sixteen years old"

_Sixteen years old… allied with the White Fang, this all sounds… familiar…_

"Over time, the name Lord Noir instilled fear into the hearts of all that hear it, he was a symbol of terrifying power, this gained him many followers, notably the famed Roman Torchwick, however, he was eventually defeated by a former student from this very school, that student was John Arc."

All eyes went to me at this point but I took no notice, my mind was somewhere else entirely.

_'John Arc… my father defeated Lord Noir? For some reason that doesn't sound right'_

"Arc defeated Lord Noir and the entire series of events was forcibly removed from records everywhere and law was passed to keep the entire matter a secret."

"Why?" Weiss spoke up, being the first student to even utter a word since the beginning of the lecture. "Why wouldn't we be taught about something as big as that?"

Shinime smirked at the question before looking directly at me.

"Mr Arc, would you mind answering that?"

The class looked confused as to why she would ask someone like me to answer something like that; they were surprised further at my answer.

"They were _cowards…_" The other students were shocked at my unusual dark tone, Pyrrha looked concerned, even a little frightened.

"They didn't want anyone to know why he fought, they didn't want to reveal that all those villages that mysteriously went up in flames were their doing. They were scared that if the public found out that a lowly village boy could stand up to their injustice that they would rise too, so he was stricken from record so they can go another day without punishment for their sins and all those wronged by the kingdom can rot without hope" with that I sat down.

Ruby looked at me in slight fear, Blake looked like she was studying me with those catlike eyes, Weiss looked confused as to how I had drawn a conclusion that quickly and Yang looked like she was trying to see if it was really me saying that.

Ren looked at me, trying to find the silly joke in all of it, finding nothing, Nora looked on, unaware of the tension. Pyrrha looked pale, she had her eyes fixed on me and was shaking slightly, scared at my change in attitude.

Shinime smirked at me for a few seconds before turning on a fake disciplinary frown

"Mr Arc, stay behind at the end of class so we can discuss that last remark"

As the bell sounded, everyone started to pack up, although Pyrrha did need to be shook by an energetic Nora. Team RWBY all took a last glance at me with a mix of confusion, concern and interest before turning away and leaving,

Ren gave me a sidewards glance without a particular emotion in his eyes, seeming to simply observe me before leaving with Nora trailing behind happily. Cardin made a point not to look at me as he took the long way out of the classroom, leaving only Pyrrha.

I looked over to her and she simply stared back and I could see that she was deeply concerned for me, a small part of me wanted to turn on the goofy persona I had grown accustomed to but I found myself simply turning my head. After a few seconds, I heard the classroom door opening then closing, indicating her absence.

_'What is this? What the hell is going on inside my head? Why do I feel this connection to professor Shinime and Lord Noir? How did I answer that without thinking? I just said what was in my head…'_

A slow clap brought me out of my musings as I turned to see the professor standing there with the same smirk I had seen earlier.

"It seems you aren't a lost cause after all young man" She walked over to me with a slight sway in her hips as she removed her glasses.

"Now, Mr Arc, I'm going to have to ask you to look directly into this eye if you would"

She leaned closer to me and I took notice of her left eye, it seemed to glow white for a second before a blinding pain hit me. I immediately grasped my head as the pain seared through my brain, the pain was so bad that I started to fade out of consciousness and my world turned black

* * *

As soon as it did, I found myself in a village, looking at myself, I was suddenly a lot shorter than I had been before and I was wearing a black tunic with a small wooden sword in my hand.

I looked around and saw my village, but it wasn't the one I remembered, instead of the bright faces, I saw poverty and grime. Homeless scattered around the street, men assaulting women, smoke filling the air.

I stood there shocked, unaware of what to do. Before I could even ask myself where I was, a horn sounded as I turned to see some official looking guards walk into the center of the town on a small stage, as they split up, I saw a regal looking man with long silver hair, orange eyes and a baggy blue overcoat address the crowd with a big smile.

"It is I, your noble Prince Solus, this area has now been claimed by the kingdom of Vale, please do not cause any unnecessary trouble and pack up your things" The crowd did immediately shouted out cries of protest and curses at the man.

"Screw you fancyman!" A particularly bold salesman spoke up

"This is our land!" Another agreed. Solus simply put a hand to his head and seemed to look disappointed as I looked on, angry at the man.

"I expected as much from filth such as this, ho hum, I did try to reach out with the kindness of my heart but it seems it is not welcome. No matter, without further ado, men, you may begin." As he said that last sentence, a crowd of guards with crossbows started to rise to the stage.

The families that were gathered immediately rushed to their homes, however this was what Solus wanted, he wanted them to go into their houses. How I knew that was a mystery that I overlooked.

As soon as all the families were inside, the men started firing. The arrows seemed to ignite as they hit the straw houses with the families in, starting an inferno that caused shrill screams to sound from the homes.

The men of the village stood shocked, worried at what to do when a man jumped onto the stage. He had a black cloak on that gave him a dark appearance, he also had ragged black hair and dark blue eyes, he carried a lengthy katana that was now pointed at Solus and his guards.

_'I know that man.'_

"You bastards!" He yelled as he charged at them.

_'That man is my father. I'm not sure how I know, but there's no doubt in my mind'_

He took out the first guard with a quick slash to the knees, causing him to fall the floor as the man swung the blade back, slicing his jugular, causing blood to erupt over the guards and stain Solus's cloak. The other guards hesitated to move, giving the man the chance to move in and swiftly cut two of the guard's stomachs.

As he fought, a single drop of blood reached my cheek, I dabbed my finger on it and brought it to my eyes.

It was the blood of a man, but it didn't feel sickly or wrong to see it staining the area, the man was evil, it was _good_ that he bled; it was _good for the world_ if unworthy blood was spilled.

As the man went for a third, he suddenly stopped, seemingly frozen mid-step. I looked confused, what had happened to him? Solus started to tut as he approached the man with his hands reaching for his sword, easily taking it from the man.

_'No! How dare you! How dare you touch that sword!'_ I was seething. Solus looked disappointed as my father panicked, trying desperately to break out of his immobilization before finally taking notice of me in the crowd, his eyes seemed to soften upon seeing me as he closed his eyes solemnly. Accepting what was to come. I think I heard him mutter my real name.

I then heard the thud as the now impaled hero fell to the floor.

"Filth cannot stain the immaculate, it's rather pitiful actually but that's the world, tut tut, how regrettable, I could have used him as a hostage to make sure the filth knows where foolish bravado gets them"

It was too much, I fell to the ground, silently screaming as tears stung my eyes. With my head buried in the dirt, I heard the cries of innocent blood being spilled everywhere as the ones with _unworthy_ blood killed them all.

When I finally found the resolve to look around, I saw fire where there were houses, I saw blood where there were puddles, and the smoke had increased tenfold, now reaching into my lungs and burning my eyes.

Through the fog I saw something dark, the cloak of my father; I slowly crawled my way over to it, coughing and cutting my arms on the broken glass that was scattered around. When I finally reached the cloak, I saw my father; he had a hole where his heart used to be.

His eyes were still closed as he looked peaceful, next to him was the blade that had been snatched by unworthy blood and used against him in his last moments. On the hilt it has the inscription "Coeur Noir". I picked it up and noticed the power that seemed to radiate through me as I held it,

_'This blade will stain itself with unworthy blood._

_This sword is an extension of me, and I am an extension of it._

_I am reborn anew to cleanse the world of all the unworthy blood._

_My name is Lord Noir and that is my vow.'_


	2. Good friends

I groaned as the visions came to an end, for the first few seconds, I had forgotten to breathe; so much was going through my head. I had seen my true father die; I had seen myself dressed in a black kimono below a black cloak with a silver trim and on my face was a metal mask with black slits where my eyes would be, my previously black hair would flow freely so Prince Solus would recognise his killer.

I remembered protests and secretly recruiting in the cities, slowly gathering forces to take on Solus, one faction I found particularly useful was Shinime and the other survivors of the IRIS experiment that had secretly been set up by Solus. The experiment was intended to implement Dust crystals into the eye of a hunter or a huntress to give them special abilities, notably Shinime's power to control a person's memory, erase it, restore it or even fabricate memories and Dorei no me's power to enslave those who looked into his eye.

I had decided to strike fast so that the other kingdoms of Remnant couldn't interfere, I only wanted to take down Solus and then restore my village as myself rather than as Noir but of course fate had other plans as we were ambushed by specially trained hunters that were led by none other than John Arc, the famous hunter who was said to fear nothing.

We were wiped out and I was taken into custody where I was questioned about my identity, not that it did them any good, I was just a stray from a long-forgotten village. They were enticed by my power and wanted it for themselves, so they had forced Shinime to use her power to fabricate my entire life's memory, although just before it, I gave her one last command.

To remove my skills as a hunter from my memory.

If I was to be a pawn for them, I would make sure to be as useless as possible. My anger only grew as I recalled just what they had fabricated, they made the bastard Arc my father and even went as far as altering my appearance to match his, as expected, I had proven to be almost worthless as a piece in their game, so they left me to fail at Beacon and eventually just be eaten by a Grimm so I would be out of the way.

That was when I met those I had called my 'friends'. I mentally scoffed at the thought of it.  
_'I have no use for friendship… however, that doesn't mean I don't have any use for them…' _I smiled at that as I stood up to face my old accomplice.

"So? How does it feel to be back, Noir?" Shinime asked me, I gave her a cold look.

"You did this to me" Her smile faltered a bit at that.

"Oh come on, you know I have to use mental trauma in order to unlock those memories, it didn't hurt _that-"_

"I'm not talking about that" She seemed to be confused at that before her eyes flashed with realization.

"Noir I was captured, they were going to kill me! I'm sorry but I _did _bring you back, doesn't that make up for it?" she looked at him hopefully.

"I suppose I should let you off, this actually opens a lot of doors, they made the mistake of planting me in the middle of their main source of fighting power, Beacon Academy. I can start working on bringing it down from the inside as the clueless Jaune Arc, but what about you? Ozpin must've noticed your presence by now…"

She smirked mischievously

"I'll be gone by the end of the day, that's the other thing I needed to tell you, I took the liberty of locating an abandoned warehouse nearby the city of Vale to be your base"

"For who exactly? I was under the assumption that all of my forces were either incarcerated or on the run"

"The White Fang have kept your violent ideals but now operate as a standalone terrorist group; Roman and Junior have their own criminal ring, and the village forces-"

I braced myself for the worst. The leftover fighters from his village were never the greatest fighters and were usually meant to recruit and protest, occasionally causing distractions so members like the White Fang could move freely.

"Are all dead…" She closed her eyes solemnly "They were publicly executed along with a few remaining members of The White Fang" I clenched my fists in anger.

"Unworthy bastards… well who _have _we got?"

"My research team naturally, along with some strays from White Fang. I have been recruiting dropouts from some of the lesser known academies that catch my eye and I have been having talks with Dorei no me, you remember him right?"

"Fondly"

_The bastard that tried to turn me into his slave, no doubt he could be useful._

"So, are you going to stay at Beacon then?"

"Naturally, I will do my best to act as I had done when I was rewritten but I am not deliberately making a fool of myself" I replied indignantly

"Wouldn't expect you to, though I do look forward to meeting your little friends and watching you be forced to be nice to me"

"Ah yes, those _friends _I've gathered. I suppose Nikos could be a useful ally, Schnee is naturally on the table, heiress to the Schnee Dust company, I will make good use of her"

"Might I suggest seduction?" Shinime asked slyly.

_Should I? I suppose a false sense of romance would be very useful if used correctly._

"I'll consider it; I'm not so sure she will bend easily,

but I've always liked a challenge"

* * *

Teams RWBY and JNPR were enjoying their lunch at their usual table, Ruby was munching away at her beloved cookies while Weiss looked on in disgust while Yang was impressed at her speed. Blake appeared to be reading a new book but her mind seemed elsewhere.

Ren was trying to eat in peace while Nora chatted to no one in particular about the dream she recently had about her and Ren running away from a black ursa with a beret. Pyrrha looked at my empty spot with a worried expression.

As I approached I noticed team CRDL sat down on the other side of the cafeteria.

_CRDL could be useful, their very presence worries the other students, I could use that power… Cardin also has a messed up sense of respect for me. I suppose that's one good thing my rewrite did,_

_Although I would have handled the situation very differently._

I smiled as I imagined the beaten body of Cardin begging me to stop my onslaught as I humbly agree… after one last punch. With that thought lightening my spirits, I headed over to the table without being noticed by my friends, although I think I saw Blake look up.

I sat down next to the one I believed to be called Sky Lark and started absent-mindedly eating the apple in my hand. The other members of the team were too shocked to say anything for a few seconds before the Mohican one, Russell I believe, spoke up.

"Arc…? What the hell are you doing?" I pretended to look confused before biting off another part of the apple.

"Hmm? Oh I just thought that I would grace you boys with my presence for a little while. Hmm the apples are quite crunchy today, what do you think?" I said offering it to Sky, who leaned away from me.

"Uh, Jaune?" Cardin spoke, I met his gaze with a curious look "I know I owe you one but I think it would be better if you just ate with your friends over the-"

"Tell me Cardin" I interrupted "Do you feel that?" I started leaking my now-darker aura into the air, making the entire table uneasy.

"That is the aura of one who could easily end your life right now" Cardin's eyes widened in fear, though he seemed too scared to speak along with the others on the table.

"I could do it right now" With that, I intensified the aura, making him visibly shudder.

"But I wouldn't do that, do you want to know why?" I asked rhetorically.

"Because were friends Cardin, because we are all friends, Sky, Russell, Dove. And friends stick together don't they?" I smiled as I nearly had them; I raised my fist and showed my ring that Shinime had gotten from Dorei in their last meeting.

As the four fear struck boys looked at the white circle on the black ring, they found they couldn't take their eyes off of it. I smiled as I knew they were now mine.

"You will devote yourselves to the will of Noir" As I said this, their eyes glowed red for a second before they returned to their normal state. The four boys then went back to eating their lunch as if nothing happened.

_'Time to test it out'_

"Russell, hand me that that milk carton" His eyes turned red yet again as he complied.

"It's semi-skimmed, Lord Noir. I hope that won't be a problem" I smiled gratefully as I drank the carton before leaving the boys to their table.

I got half-way out of the cafeteria when my arm was suddenly grabbed and I was pulled aside by none other than Blake, who proceeded to pull me out and into an empty classroom

"Blake? Uh, what's up?" I asked innocently, but her eyes, they were accusing eyes…

_'…there's no way that she-'_

"I heard you" She spoke with deadly serious eyes.

"Heard me?" I responded innocently "What are you talking about?"

_'Damn it, Faunus ears!'_

"What did you do to Cardin and the others?" She asked fiercely.

"Well I was just talking to them but I don't think they like me very much" I asked with fake disappointment, rubbing my hair absently before Blake grabbed it harshly

"I don't blame them after you threatened to kill them and put them under hypnosis"

_'Well I've got one more usage before the ring runs out, I wanted to use it on Ozpin or Weiss if it came to it but I suppose that could wait, and after all, someone with her skillset would be useful'_

"Well, you got me, such a shame too, I thought we could have been close, my precious little kitty" I said as I inched closer to her. The look of anger on her face was replaced by fear as she realised I had pressed my sword against her heart when she was distracted.

"Who are you?!" She asked in panic as I raised my fist yet again.

"I am your new owner" Her eyes flashed red as she released my arm and looked at me.

"Oh, Jaune, what are we doing here?" She asked me as I lowered my arm.

"We were just talking about how the White Fang could be great once more if it changes its ways."

"I didn't know you were interested in that kind of thing" She said, surprised at me.

"Yeah, I believe they could be honorable once again… with the right leader"

She seemed to consider that for a second. It was fruitless, though, she would agree with anything I said now whether she liked it or not.

"Yes, I believe so too"

* * *

I smiled as I gazed at the black and white ring on my finger.

_'The ring with the power to enslave five individuals and have them bend to your will without question, they will jump to action at any command and will act loyal towards you when the ring isn't activated as an added bonus… Thank you Dorei no me, I suppose I can overlook you almost enslaving me… until you stop being useful that is…'_

I laughed as I placed the ring in my pocket before heading over to the table where my 'friends' sat.


	3. Family Pride

Pyrrha's POV

I sat in silence, wondering just what had happened to Jaune,

_'He was fine this morning, but whatever that substitute professor was saying to him seemed to change him into a whole different person than he was five minutes prior…'_

I visibly shuddered as I remembered the dark aura that had surrounded the boy as he spoke in a tone I had never heard before

_'Jaune… what is going on with you?'_

"Pyrrha! Are you even listening?" Nora accused, annoyed at having been ignored.

"Sorry" I replied "I'm just worried-"

"About vomit-boy?" Yang chided with a sly smile. "You worry too much, he probably just got up on the wrong side of the bed today" She concluded before taking another sip of her apple juice. Ren looked contemplative

"Normally, I would agree, but it's _what _he was saying that worries me, insulting the higher ups, calling them cowards, did you hear how he fixated on '_village boy'_? Sounded almost like he was comparing himself-"

"To who exactly, Ren?" I jumped as I heard the familiar voice, it sounded honestly curious The rest of the table looked up to the newcomer to confirm that he was really-

"Jaune!" I greeted shocked at his sudden arrival. Ren had his eyes fixed on the blonde boy, seemingly analyzing him before he looked away.

"To no one…" He said dismissively. Jaune's eyes narrowed slightlybefore he turned to me.

"Sorry about earlier Pyrrha, I don't know what came over me" He said smiling at me, but this smile didn't warm her heart like all the others, there was a sudden feeling of unease in me as he turned around.

"So what was with you anyway? It was like a black cloud was hanging over you or something" Yang asked as the others waited for his response that he gave without hesitation.

"Oh, I just got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning" He confessed sheepishly, causing her to smile triumphantly at me.

"See? Nothing to worry about, besides I don't really think Jaune has the mental capacity to go all dark and mysterious" The others smiled at this, but Blake seemed irked for some reason.

"What, are you saying that Jaune is stupid?" She asked, setting aside her book, a rare sight, seemingly offended.

"Well he's not exactly the prime candidate for the Beacon honour roll" She chuckled, I was about to step in and defend him when Blake beat me to it, seeming angrier than I have ever seen her.

"You have no idea what he is truly capable of, you ignorant-"

"Blake, please calm down" Jaune interrupted calmly, soothing the cat eared faunus as she nodded calmly. It seemed that the entire cafeteria had heard the outburst as all eyes were fixated on their table; the stares seemed to last hours before Jaune spoke up.

"Uh, sorry everyone, we were practicing a scene for the short play I wrote" he lied with an embarrassed smile. One boy scoffed at him

"_You _wrote a play?" he jeered, causing several snickers to sound throughout the room. Jaune had to restrain Blake with a stern look before looking like he had forgotten something.

A yell drew my gaze as I saw the jeering boy now covered in his own lunch with team CRDL surrounding him with mischievous smiles, laughing at the boy's misfortune as the snickers were now directed at him. At that moment, I could've sword I saw a small smile grace his lips before his face turned back to his sheepish grin as he took a seat next to me, before biting happily into an apple as conversations began yet again in the previously silent room.

I watched as the cheery boy went back to his usual routine, laughing with his friends even when he was at the butt of the jokes. However, there were small things that she noticed, the way he wouldn't look offended at the insults anymore, just taking them in stride, almost _enjoying _the mockery.

My eyes went over to Blake, she had continued reading her book, but I saw her constantly looking over to Jaune, taking in every word that left his mouth like an adoring fan.

_'Why did she get so worked up over Jaune being mocked like that? She is normally such a calm and collected girl that spoke when necessary, come to think of it, she had left earlier saying she had to get some books from her locker but she returned empty handed after just a minute..'_

My eyes then wandered to team CRDL who were sitting around, mocking the other students as usual, but occasionally they would look over, at first she thought the looks were directed at her but upon further inspection, she found that they were directed at the blonde next to her.

_'They had gone out of their way to make a fool of the one who insulted Jaune, just what is going on with everyone?!'_

One thing she also couldn't help picking up on was his attitude towards a certain icy heiress at the table, he seemed to direct most of the conversation towards her and what was happening in _her _life that she answered without any problems, probably because she was raised being the centre of attention, but Jaune had usually just hopelessly flirted with her or ended up being her cushion to fall on, but now was different.

He had her attention and seemed to get along unusually well with him as he wasn't constantly calling her 'snow angel' anymore. I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy when the two seemed to get lost in their own conversations, oblivious to what was happening around them.

"So Weiss, how _do _you keep up with schoolwork and training? I mean surely the heiress of the Schnee Dust Corporation has a lot of responsibilities." He asked curiously

She smirked at that "Of course I do, but its normally just giving updates on how Myternaster is doing with different Dust sets and sometimes confirming orders of large containers of Dust when they are ordered by the school"

He seemed to perk up at that answer.

"I've got to say, I've always wanted to spar against a Dust operated weapon, do you think we could spar sometime?" She seemed like she was ready to reject the offer but suddenly looked thoughtful.

"I suppose I could practice using the fire cartridge, it didn't really work out last time I used it thanks to someone's poor communication in battle" She indicated to the cookie munching girl to her left who looked up instantly.

"Hey, I'm not the one who set the forest on fire!" She defended before going back to her cookies as Jaune chuckled.

As the bell signalled that they needed to head to the training grounds for the 1v1 matches they had talked about last session, Jaune went out of his way to help wish the other's luck, but I could tell it was mostly directed at Weiss. He sent one last smile at us before departing with Blake following quickly behind.

I turned to see Ren dragging a still babbling Nora along as Ruby, Weiss and Yang followed confused at their teammate's quick exit. I stayed there for a few seconds before shaking off my thoughts as I headed to the portable lockers.

Noir POV

_'Damn, I've got to do a better job at playing my old self, Nikos suspects me now as well as Ren. I just have to spar like I did before. Then again, my old self did get better after being trained by her, so I shouldn't lose by that much.' _

I grimaced as I picked up the sword and shield my supposed 'grandfather' had used, I hated the thought of using an Arc's weapon but pushed that aside as I headed to the training fields.

As I approached, I found the teams sitting in a set of stands as Yang was sparring against a nervous looking Sky as Goodwitch supervised, I couldn't help but frown at that.

_'I chose them for their reputation, but their fighting skill needs serious improvement, in fact, I don't believe I've even seen the members use a weapon besides Cardin.'_

I greeted the others as I joined them and sat by Pyrrha.

_'I need to remove her suspicions'_

"Jaune? Are you okay?" I acted surprised at that before turning on a sympathetic expression.

"I'm sorry Pyrrha, I don't like seeing you worried" I put my hand softly on the side of her face, making her slightly blush.

"I've just got some stuff on my mind right now" I said as I removed my hand and I could've sworn I saw a flicker of disappointment on her face.

"It's okay Jaune, just don't worry me like that okay?" She asked as she smiled at him.

_'Got her'_

"It's a promise"

* * *

As expected, Yang made quick work of the blue haired boy, much to my disappointment.

"Now, would Mr Arc and Mr Ren please come down to the field please?

I made my way downstairs after wishing Ren luck. I got into the defence pose that Nikos had shown me, it was not the one I would've used but it was still rather effective.

As Goodwitch explained the rules, I looked over to my opponent who met my gaze with indifference. I kept my smile but his expression remained unchanged.

_'Ren, didn't you ever hear the phrase 'Curiosity killed the Lotus Boy'?' _

Before I knew it, Ren had his guns raised and began to fire at me as I raised my sword instinctively, knocking them away. I mentally cursed at that,

_'In order to keep up appearance, I'll have to use the shield to defend rather than my sword'_

Ren seemed shocked at my swordsmanship before he raised his guns to release another flurry of pink projectiles.

_'Quite a one-track battle plan you have there, Lotus Boy'_ I thought as I charged at him with while avoiding most of the projectiles but deliberately let myself get hit by some of them. As I reached him, I swung like I did during Nikos's lessons, it had some form but I tended to reach too far during lessons, missing the opponent slightly, leaving myself open, so I did the same then.

Ren saw that opportunity and directed his aura into his palms as I let myself get hit with it, sending me flying backwards to the other end of the training field. I looked to the others to see their reactions, they mostly looked slightly sympathetic, but Yang looked unamused.

"Come on vomit-boy! Fight like an Arc!" She shouted, seemingly wanting the match to get interesting.

I had vowed not to let comments like that hinder my act, but that set something off inside of me. _'Fight like an Arc?! Fight like a coward who faces enemy without honour, defiling the name 'hunter' itself?! OK, Yang, you wanted interesting… here I come Lotus Boy…'_

I let out a small roar of anger as I engulfed my hand with my aura before swinging my sword, sending the aura in a crescent shape towards the unexpecting boy as he was sent back, his SMGs flying out of his hands as he let out a grunt of pain.

The training field was silent for a few seconds as everyone had wondered the same thing

_'Where the HELL did that come from?'_

Everyone was shocked as Goodwitch announced that Ren's aura was almost completely depleted, making me the victor. I cursed quietly to myself.

_'Well, I'll have to explain that later…'_

* * *

Ren's POV

I woke up to find myself in a recovery room with my hand seemingly being crushed; I looked over to see Nora asleep by my bedside as she held my hand in a deathgrip with her strength that I wasn't at all surprised at. I had seen her hold her grenade launcher doubling as a massive hammer before.

I chuckled at that before I remembered why I was there in the first place. Jaune had been fighting as usual, up until Yang had shouted out, anyone would assume it was a look of pride as he remembered his heritage, but I saw differently.

_'It was as if he was angry just by being called an Arc. Then he released that massive aura attack, Pyrrha wouldn't be able to teach him something that powerful would she?'_

I took notice of a vase on the table next to my bed, it had Lotus flowers inside of it.

On it, a label read "Saw these and thought of you J, your buddy, Jaune. P.S I hope you get better soon!"

_'Jaune… sooner or later, I will figure you out'_


	4. Petals of Hope

Noir POV

_'At 8:00 every morning, he enters his office and makes himself a coffee, he uses milk and two sugars, he goes over to his computer and reviews the student's progress, he then goes over the application forms and transcripts for students wishing to join the school, he consults with Glynda Goodwitch who disagrees approximately 50% of the time, he then spends about an hour coming up with catchy names if the students were to form a team'_

I frowned as I reviewed Blake's report, when I ordered her to gather Intel on Ozpin's daily duties, I had expected vague observations, while I was impressed at my faunus slave's work, I was unimpressed at the headmaster, '_This is the man in charge of raising hundreds of fierce warriors to fight for the kingdom'. _It wasn't as if I was surprised, I was always skeptical of the team names, although I expected he didn't try very hard when he came up with team RWBY.

I had been observing Ozpin for a week to see how the school was run and I now had a basic idea of how the system worked when admitting pupils, I also had a vague idea of the disciplinary system when I _suggested _that Russell Thrush should strip naked in the middle of the cafeteria. He had received cleaning duty for a week as he cleaned the sick that had resulted from his 'performance'.

Although I have recently discovered that I haven't been the only one observing, I have been sensing a certain Lotus Boy's aura for quite a while now, the boy had been suspicious of him ever since the 1v1 when I accidentally unveiled one of my more powerful techniques, then again, he wasn't alone. I grimaced as I remembered the scene

One Week Before

_ "Please calm down Ms. Valkyrie, he should be just fine after a good night's sleep" Nora seemed to calm slightly but still fidgeted nervously in her seat. I took her hand in mine and tried to look like I cared._

_"He's fine, Nora, I mean, he had his aura protecting him, he just needs to rest while it builds back up" Nora smiled at me and nodded at that but her face soon returned to its worried expression. _

_'Ugh, compassion never was my strong suit' I thought as I lay back in my chair._

_The rest of the team along with Yang and Blake although I was pretty sure the latter was there for a different reason as she had her eyes glued on me the entire time._

_Yang also didn't seem too concerned for the magenta eyed boy as her mind seemed to be somewhere else altogether._

_Apparently, the curiosity piqued when she turned towards me_

_"So… what?" She asked me. The others looked confused but I knew what she was asking_

_"What?" I asked, I didn't want to go into that conversation right now, but of course…_

_"When did you learn to do that move with the big swishy power move?"_

_Pyrrha seemed interested too as she leaned in._

_"Oh, well when Pyrrha told me about my large amounts of aura, I was interested so Blake told me about how you can focus your aura into your weapon unleash it in different forms to attack from a distance, although I probably should practice more control when I'm sparring if this is the result" I ended with a sad tone, but I was actually quite happy with it. _

_When I had previously used that attack it had been a small wave that would disarm them but the crescent shaped aura had blown Lotus Boy to the other side of the field._

_I smiled as I remembered the look of shock and panic on his face. _

_"When was this, Jaune?" Blake asked me. My eyes widened as I realized I hadn't given her a direct order._

_"Blake, you remember that, don't you?" Her eyes flashed red before she turned back._

_"Yes, I remember that clearly" She deadpanned_

_I resisted the urge to shake my head at that. Yang looked confused._

_"Blake, you never told me you knew how to do that as well" She smiled happily_

_Blake simply looked confused. "Do what?"_

_"You know, the eye thing?" I froze as she said that._

_'She SAW that?!'_

_"What are you talking about?" She asked, honestly not knowing what the blonde was talking about. Yang seemed to think about it_

_"Sorry, I could've sworn I just saw-"_

_"OK, he's stable if you want to see him" As soon as the nurse said that, Nora leaped up and dashed into the room. I released the breath I had been holding._

Present

I absent-mindedly held one of the Lotus flowers I had forgotten to include in Ren's bedside present as I thought about what I had almost done.

I had come so close to being discovered, if Yang had finished that sentence, then they would probably try to figure it out, the others would hear about it, more importantly, _Lotus Boy_ would hear about it, the guy already has his eyes on me, if he were to recall Blake's sudden loyalty to me, he would immediately connect the dots and come looking for answers.

_'Lotus Boy, you really are a bother' _I thought as tightened my grip on the flower

_'I'll let you continue your little investigation'_ I pulled away one petal and let it fall.

_'I'll let your suspicions grow and grow'_ I pulled away another petal after another

_'I'll let you worry about who you can trust'_ I pulled the last one away.

_'I'll reach your very core'_ I observed the yellow core in the middle and tightened my grip.

_'Then, I'll release you from all of it'_ I let the naked flower fall to the ground as I walked away.

* * *

"Shinime, how have you been doing?"

"Well" she chirped happily "I have managed to broker a deal with Dorei no me"

I closed my eyes in frustration, a deal with that guy meant trouble.

"He will offer you everything he can, be that armies of mindless drones, his rings, he'd even accompany you and brainwash people personally. However, in exchange…"

"Who does he want?"

"Nora Valkyrie"

"The hammer girl? Whatever would he want with her?" I asked in surprise.

"She is the perfect slave, is she not? After all, who would suspect the sweet ditzy girl to be an assassin?" I saw the logic in that, who else would he pick to be his personal hitman.

"Bring her to him and he will see that you're a worthwhile ally"

"So all those things I did before the rewrite mean nothing to him anymore?"

"He doesn't know whether the rewrite is completely gone, he wants to know for sure that you're the real deal, speaking of which, your orders came in today, but there are some differences in this one to your last"

"I know, after all, a fresh start means a fresh new outfit to go with it"

* * *

Nora POV

_'Now which way did he go?'_ I wondered as I bounced down the hallway, Ren told me to meet him and Pyrrha at the training grounds at six, he didn't say anything about Jaune so I assumed he was busy or something.

I gasped 'What if he was pushed into the rocket propelled lockers again? If Cardin seriously did that then I'm pretty sure that entitles him to a small bit of broken legg-age, is that a word? Oh, I'll just ask Ren when I find him'

My thoughts were interrupted as I ran into something mid-bounce.

_'Owww, why do my bounces always get interrupted!_' I thought as I began to get angry but I cheered up when I thought about getting to Ren.

_'Maybe the entire thing is a surprise pancake party! Oh what if there's syrup? I didn't bring my straw! Oh well I can always-'_

"Watch where you're going!" Barked Dove as he stood up from being knocking him over.

"Pigeon? What were you doing on the floor?" I asked, confused.

"Pigeon?! I'm Dove and I was on the floor because-" He stopped as his eyes met Nora's seeming to finally recognize who had pushed him over.

"Uh, Pigeon?" I asked, trying to snap him out of it " Helloooo? Are you in there?" I knocked on his head before pulling back. 'That's kind of weird…'

"Hey Pigeon, why are your eyes all red?"

* * *

Ren POV

_'She's still not here…'_ Nora never had the best sense of direction but she had always shown up sooner or later, with everything happening recently, I couldn't help but feel anxious.

"Pyrrha, did Jaune say why he couldn't show up today?" I asked, trying not to sound too suspicious.

She looked up from where she was reloading Milo. "He said he and Blake were going to the Vale library for a school project" I detected a slight amount of jealousy in her tone as she said that. "You did tell Nora where we were training right?" She asked, changing the subject.

I thought back, Nora did tend to misunderstand me quite a lot.

_'No, even she could understand a command as simple as that'_

"Definitely" She frowned at that.

"Do you think we should start look-"

She was interrupted by a loud noise coming from the other side of Beacon.

_'Is that the sound of an engine?' _I then saw the rocket powered locker flying out from the school. For some reason, the sight made me uneasy.

"Pyrrha, whose locker is that?" I asked her as she brought looked through the scope of her rifle.

"Dove Bronzewing's"

Nora POV

I had stopped screaming, I had stopped kicking the sides of the locker, I had stopped searching for the phone I knew I didn't have. I had given up hope; hope wasn't getting me out of it. I could only tremble in fear as the door to the locker opened,

I saw that I was in a large, dark room with little air. I looked up to see a dark hand offered to me, connected to the arm was a man wearing a full body black suit and his face was hidden by a metal mask with no facial features other than with slits for the eyes and a symbol of a black crescent resembling the moon, he wore a black armored shirt under a similarly colored hooded robe with a silver trim that hid his hair and silver gauntlets on his arms, he also had black cargo pants with over-sized metal shin pads leading to heavy metal boots.

Next to him was a woman in what appeared to be a catsuit with a small masquerade mask and her hair was tied into a ponytail, she also wore a necklace with a pendant akin to the moon on the other man's mask

I hesitated for a few seconds before the man forcefully grabbed my hand and hauled me up to face me towards the other man in the room, he was a tall, pale man with short grey hair and a sinister smile wearing a blue pinstripe suit.

"Well Miss Valkyrie, I apologize for the bumpy ride but Noir here insisted we try out his slaves and I can say they are quite reliable, but that will be nothing compared to you, my little angel" I had my eyes fixed on the floor, unable to look at the man.

'Noir? Wasn't he defeated by Jaune's dad?'

I gasped as I felt his finger on my chin, lifting my head to face him.

"Now Nora, you should know better than to look away when talked to" He chuckled as he looked into her eyes. Our gaze met.

Ren POV

There was only one thought on my mind as I raced down the busy street.

'Nora, please, please be safe!'

An hour earlier

_"Cardin, I did it, she should be there by now" _

_Cardin smiled "Heheh, I can just imagine it, a helpless girl flying in a locker over Vale."_

_Dove laughed "Yeah, she was scared shitless when I shoved her in there, you should have heard her, 'Noo please, save me Renny'" He said, imitating the young girl, unaware of the boy listening in around the corner_

Present

I followed the locker as fast as I could before I saw it take a sudden dive towards the abandoned warehouse near the docks.

Without a second's hesitation, I ran.

Nora POV

_'Pyrrha, Jaune… Ren. Please, don't be sad, okay? Just think about good things, like pancakes or ursa skin rugs! Pyrrha, please take care of Ren, he may look all calm and collected but he's a big softy on the inside' _I chuckled sadly at that as the man looked deep into my eyes.

A crash resounded throughout the warehouse as the man's head turned towards the intruder, I turned and I saw him entering through the hole he had created in the warehouse's wall. My heart fluttered as hope returned to my eyes.

"Ren…" I smiled at my hero. His eyes widened as he saw me.

"Get away from her!" He shouted as he ran towards us, only to stop when he found a long blade pressed against his neck, drawing a little blood.

"That's as far as you go, I'm afraid" He jumped quickly as he got into a defensive pose.

"Dorei, please proceed" He said to the man who held me, I started to struggle again but all that did was make him tighten his grip on me.

"No, please, REN!" I screamed as I forced my eyes closed.

"No!" Ren shouted but stopped when the girl in the catsuit appeared in front of him and pulled out a pistol.

She fired.

My eyes shot open as I looked over to my hero.

Ren looked confused for a second before he looked down to see his clothes being stained red as he fell to the ground in pain.

I froze.

_'No… he didn't… he couldn't…'_

"REEEEEEEEN!" I cried before I was once again forced to look into the face of the man.

The last thing I remembered was the hope leaving me and the tear streaming down my face as I looked into the man's eyes.

Ren POV

I coughed as more blood left my mouth, I attempted to lift myself up, only for a cold metal boot to stomp on my back as I collapsed to the ground, I looked up to see the same man that had pressed his sword against my neck.

"Get… 'cough' off me!" I attempted to shout, but it just came out as a strangled cry.

He didn't even look down at me as Nora was taken away by that man.

"No… Nora!" I called but she was already gone. I looked up to see the man call out to yet another person hiding in the darkness of the room.

"Shinime, do your thing then have him patched up, I need to get back to Beacon"

My eyes widened as I saw the substitute professor walk up to the masked man as he removed his foot from my back.

"Yes, Lord Noir"

_'Noir?! She said he was defeated! What does he want with Nora?!'_

"Just stay calm, young man" She said as she bent down to meet his eyes.

"This has all been a bad dream" Her eyes flashed red as my world faded to black.


	5. The Pieces of the Puzzle

Weiss POV

The last month had gone so quickly and the Vytal Tournament was now upon us, the month had been full of putting up with Ruby and her 'team building' exercises that included shopping and frequent games of hide and seek.

_'Her insane ideas may work in battle, but just as quick she's back to being a child' _I thought as I walked over to the training grounds. That was another thing that helped the month go by, training with Jaune.

At first, I had been reluctant, after all it _was_ the boy she had seen hanging from a tree in the emerald forest, I really hadn't expected him to be much more than target practice during our spars, that was until I had seen him go 1 on 1 with Ren. He had been performing as sloppily as he always had and was losing as a result but then Yang shouted out to him, the burst of aura that came from him had shocked me to say the least. The attack had removed almost all of his opponent's aura in one hit and left him bedridden for a week.

Since then, we have been training together recently. To me, it was practice as much as it was research, I wanted to know where that power came from, I had once overheard Pyrrha talking about his aura reserves being exceptionally large but I had always assumed it was like a child with a big sword that he didn't know how to swing. But he had controlled his aura almost perfectly and had even learnt to channel his aura into his sword and unleash it.

To be perfectly honest, at first I was jealous of it, the scar on my eye was a testimony to my limited aura skills. I helped him with his stances and sword styles while he helped me further unlock my aura, while he seemed to be progressing _abnormally _faster than she I had expected, I could manage healing the small graze or bruise but I was still a far way away from his level of aura control.

I couldn't help but smile back as he shot me his trademark grin.

"Hey Weiss" I saw he had already set up the targets.

That was another thing he insisted on training with, he seemed to be intrigued by my Myrtenaster and how it manipulated Dust to attack, so he usually set up targets to test its speed, accuracy and power.

I also showed him the six dust compartments, White, for my glyphs, Yellow, for agility, Blue, for repulsion, Red, for ranged fire attacks and a powerful shield, Light Blue, for creating Ice walls or fields and finally violet, that can temporarily increase my attack power while also being able to create a black glyph to stop my foes movement, or the 'Ruby Slingshot' as Jaune had dubbed it.

In return, he had shown me how he used his sword not only to send out those devastating aura attacks, but also to block projectiles, I had remembered being shocked when he had blocked Ren's fire from his SMGs but I had simply assumed Ren had shot less powerful pellets specifically for sparring.

I flicked my wrist as a searing spiral or fire soared towards the target but frowned as I saw that my fire attack had slightly missed the bull's-eye, creating a diagonal line just underneath it.

"Hey Weiss, does it always have to spiral like that?" Jaune asked, looking at my rapier.

I was about to retort before I realised it, 'Why does it always have to spiral? That was the way I was always taught to fire it so I had never tried it another way.

"How would _you_ do it?" I asked, while it may have seemed preposterous to ask for his opinion before, he always seemed to surprise me, one way or another.

"Why not try like this?" He approached me and embraced ne as he moved me into a separate stance. While a part of me was screaming at me to push him off an have him imprisoned for coming so close to me, a larger part had grown to take comfort from it. Jaune's touch was always so warm and I couldn't help but blush as he took my arm and slightly pushed my elbow down, making my pose resemble the 'en guarde' position before moving away, to my slight disappointment.

"There, now how about you try swinging down?" With a nod, I did so as the fire erupted from the rapier in a single line, hitting the second target dead on and causing severe scorch marks on the bull's eye.

I turned to see Jaune with a surprised expression before he broke out into a laugh as he once again embraced me, this time lifting me up and spinning around.

"Jaune! Stop! Put me down this instant!" I shouted, trying hard to keep the slight giggle out of my mouth.

"Sorry" he apoligized as he set me down. I couldn't help but take a second look at his eyes as my feet reached the ground. The dark blue orbs were always so full of joy and I couldn't help but feel happier when I looked into them.

"Uh, Weiss? What is it? Do I have something on my face?"

My face burned bright red as I immediately stepped away from him.

"Nothing! Le-Let's just get back to training okay?" I sputtered as he seemed confused, but shrugged as we continued training.

Shinime POV

I smiled as I watched the scene from afar; Noir had done well with seducing the heiress,

_'I never expected you to be they womanizer type'_ I thought as I chuckled.

"I'm guessing Jaune is doing well then?" I jumped as I had almost forgotten my visitor.

"Yes, the time will soon come when you will have to play your part"

She simply pulled out her hammer and inspected it for a few seconds before turning back to me.

"I'm fully prepared, after all, jobs like this are why I was chosen in the first place" She expressed emotionlessly. I couldn't help but feel a twinge of unease as she said it so matter-of-factly. Of course, I was prepared to do anything if it was the will of Noir but seeing the previously ever cheerful girl talk about killing the head of the Schnee Dust Company so calmly really was something to behold.

I smiled yet again as I remembered Noir's words.

_"I will make her fall for me as her world falls to pieces around her, I will be the only thing she has, I will become the only one she can put all her faith in as I slowly gain control over one of the largest Dust reserves in all of Remnant"_

Junior POV

I sighed as yet another underage teen attempted to order a drink at my bar. I grimaced as I remembered the last time I had let a girl like that enter my club.

_'The last one's cowboy-esque outfit had been strange but what is with this getup?_' I thought as I eyed the black haired woman in the black catsuit and masquerade mask.

Apparently noticing my stare, the woman turned as I noticed the pendant on her necklace

_'Isn't that… no, that must be a coincidence, after all what are the chances of-'_

"Junior I presume?" She offered her hand that I took slowly, wary of the mysterious woman.

"Blair, Master Noir's Personal assistant" She introduced. My eyes widened as I took in what she had just told me.

"Noir? Wasn't he defeated by the Arc?" I remembered the day the army was torn apart by the surprise attack and how the two had gone off to finish it alone but I had heard that Noir had been killed.

"Yes, but they spared him in hopes of using his power and replaced his memories, however, he has recently regained them and is again working against Solus from the heart of Vale's fighting power, Beacon Academy."

"So… what does he plan to do?" I asked seriously, Noir had always planned big and I wasn't sure I wanted to get roped into this one.

"With a little more co-operation" She started, shooting a glance at me before turning back to her drink.

"He plans to take over Beacon, control the Schnee Dust Company, gather an army once again and take on Solus"

I nearly spat out my drink "That's easier said than done!" I spluttered.

"He is already nearing partial control over the Schnee Dust Company and has his ways for taking over Beacon." I narrowed my eyes at the vague description but listened on.

"The only part that is missing is the army and Noir will need you and your connections to gather it"

"No!" I exclaimed, catching the attention of the henchmen nearby,

"The last time I helped that guy, I lost almost all of my men and resources, I had to build from the ground up, I'm not doing that shit again!" My breath caught in my throat as I heard the unmistakable click and the cold metal pressing against my chest. My heart started beating rapidly as I looked up to see Blair raising her fist. I braced myself for the punch yet nothing came, I opened my eyes slowly to see the woman holding up a black ring with a white circle in the middle and I found I couldn't take my eyes off of it

"You will obey the will of Noir" She commanded as I lost consciousness.

Pyrrha POV

I couldn't help but frown at the two opposite me, we had all gathered for lunch as usual and as usual, Jaune and Weiss happened to sit next to each other. I wasn't sure if Weiss meant it or not but that was the way it would always end up. And of course Blake was to his other side; she had seemed to grow closer to Jaune as well, to my increased annoyance.

I had noticed more and more over time how Jaune had seemed to grow distant from his team, I had never really seen much between Ren and Jaune as I wasn't sure the two had ever really been acquainted but what Jaune and I had was special!

_'At least, I thought it was…'_ I thought sadly as I saw the two telling the others about their training.

"You let him use your sword?!" Ruby exclaimed as she looked surprised at her teammate.

"It's a _rapier, _and it's called Myrtenaster. And yes, I let him use it" My ears perked at that,

_'Weiss doesn't like people looking at her rapier for too long, let alone touch it!'_

"I wanted to see how a dust operated weapon worked, I also think it's the coolest weapon here, I mean it can increase her speed, power, spit fire and create ice!" Jaune said excitedly.

Weiss smiled with pride as Ruby pouted.

"Oh come on! You do remember my _giant _scythe don't you?"

"Yeah that's cool too, Ruby"

"Ahem" Interjected Yang "What about my gauntlets?" She said, aiming them at the blond boy, who smirked mischievously.

"Meh, they're so-so" He said, to Yang's shock, then immediate anger as her eyes turned red.

"Sorry, would you mind _repeating_ that, Vomit Boy?" She said as she glared daggers at him.

"Joking! I was joking, okay?" He choked nervously.

She gave him one last glare as she calmed down and leaned back in her seat.

"Well it's not like you can really say anything when all you have is a sword and shield"

"Oh, I don't use them anymore" Everyone looked intrigued at that but Weiss seemed to grown an arrogant smirk as Blake held a small smile.

"What? You don't use them anymore?" Ruby asked in shock.

"No, since I can block using my aura now, the shield seemed a bit pointless, as for the sword" He brought up a long black scabbard with a silver chain pattern running down it.

"A katana?" Ren asked as Jaune pulled out the large blade with the black and silver handle and midnight blue blade that seemed to pulsate with a black aura.

"It's a special kind of katana that is made to manipulate aura as well as absorb excess aura from the atmosphere".

"It truly is a magnificent weapon; I plan on showing father when we see him tomorrow"

"Wait, you are going to take Jaune's sword to the Schnee Dust Company HQ?" I asked, speaking for the first time since sitting down.

Weiss glanced at the boy next to her before turning back to me.

"No, he will be accompanying me" She answered, much to the two team's shock.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you never offered to take _me _to the HQ!" Ruby cried

"It's only so he can see the weapon in action!" Weiss protested.

"We can show our weapon's too! I mean when do you get to see a hammer slash _grenade launcher_ these days?" Nora suggested but before Weiss could reject, Yang chided in.

"Yeah! Then I can show him my power too!" Weiss paled at that, imagining her father looking upon an enraged red-eyed blonde as she destroyed everything in sight.

"It could be a chance to show him how you fellow teams have been doing compared to you" Blake mused.

"I would also like to go" I interjected. Weiss turned to me as if saying _Not you too?!_

"If I was there with them, then my image would probably allow us to meet with him"

_'Weiss did tell me he liked my cereal'_

Weiss, seemingly giving up threw her hands up in frustration.

"Fine! You know what, let's make it a team RWBY and JNPR fieldtrip why don't we?" Weiss suggested sarcastically, unintentionally causing a cheer from Nora and Ruby.

She put her hand to her forehead in defeat as Jaune could only grin sheepishly at her.

Weiss sighed "Father will love meeting those two"

I looked over to see Nora grinning "I can't wait to meet him, either"

* * *

A/N Just in case you didn't guess it already, 'Blair' is Blake's codename when working for Noir. -RareNyte


	6. Death to The King

Noir POV

The heiress sighed a I showed her a pathetically sheepish smile that she apparently liked as she returned a small smile, though it was lost as soon as it came as Nora piqued up again.

"Oooh! I'm so excited!" She chirped as she latched onto the Lotus Boy, "Hey, do they make snow cones here? Or maybe popsicles! Oh! What if they have those snowball thingies with the juice or maybe-"

"Nora," the Lotus boy interrupted, placing a hand over the energetic girl's mouth.

"This is a Dust Company, not an Ice Cream parlour" Nora pouted at that for a second before returning cheery and swinging on the boy's back.

I couldn't help but crack a smile at that, Shinime had told me about her _true _nature, apparently it was something to behold. I took a glance back at the group following behind.

_'You have no idea what she's really capable of'_ I frowned as I looked over the Lotus Boy.

_'Him on the other hand…'_

5 Days Before

_"Nora!" The boy shouted as he started awake, catching my attention, as well as Blake's, who had come over to give her report on Ozpin. _

_"Ren? Are you okay?" I asked with false concern. He looked over to answer but froze when he took notice of the faunus sitting beside me._

_His facial expression changed from confusion, to fear, then ultimately anger. I frowned. "What's wrong?"_

_He seemed to shake himself from a trance as he returned to his usual passive expression._

_"Sorry" He turned back around to return to sleep "It was all a bad dream"_

Present

I cursed softly as I remembered Shinime's words, you had to be careful what you said with hypnosis, unfortunately for us, her words had rang true and he had slowly started to experience strange dreams about severe pain, sadness and a crescent moon.

"Jaune, is everything okay?" I looked to my left to see the red haired huntress addressing me.

"Yeah, I'm just worried that I might leave a bad impression on Weiss's dad" I returned sheepishly. I noticed a small twinge of disappointment in her eyes before I felt someone else to the other side of me.

"You should be fine" I looked happier at Weiss's words.

"That is, if you don't mess up, talk out of turn, goof off, get distracted, or get scared."

I pretended to be hurt by the words but if my fake persona had allowed it_, _I would have picked up on the joking smile on her face.

Weiss's POV

_'This is it'_ I tried to calm myself as I thought about all the ways this could end up in me losing my inheritance because of some cookie ravaging monster and a hammer wielding sociopath.

I jumped as I felt something warm catch my hand. Pushing away my initial instincts to slap away the unworthy hand, I saw who's hand it was and that small grin that never failed to make me feel elated.

"You're going to be just fine, I promise" I gave the blond a small smile back before he separated as the doors in front of us opened. I tried to ignore the sudden absence of warmth on my right hand as I saw my father sat on his 'throne'.

We found ourselves in a large circular room, with attendants constantly buzzing around and my father's personal guard standing frozen in front of the steps that lead to my father's favourite spot where he could look down upon anyone who was to visit him, even his own daughter.

His stern expression seemed to soften slightly but he frowned as he saw the mix and match group of hunters and huntresses trailing behind me.

"My most precious Weiss," He greeted as I curtseyed, prompting the others to show their respect, also. "If I may ask…" He started as he studied the group.

"Who are these friends of yours?"

I was about to respond when Jaune took a step forward, much to my immediate dismay.

_'Jaune?! What are you-'_ Before I could even finish that thought, Jaune dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

"Jaune Arc, sir, leader of team JNPR at Beacon Academy"

"An Arc, you say?" My father asked, intrigued at the blond on his knees.

"That's quite a reputation to uphold" He said with a hint of anger in his voice

Jaune looked up at that "I will do my best, sir"

After the rest of the group had recovered from the shock of seeing Jaune so formal, they too introduced themselves; Pyrrha also caught his attention as he was in the especially reserved seating for the event and had been impressed with her skills.

"Father, I would like you to take a look at Jaune's weapon, I think it is quite interesting"

My father raised an eyebrow at that. I _rarely _offered compliments out.

"Very well, please" He raised his hand to the blond. "Proceed"

Jaune nodded as he pulled out the black sheathe with the silver chain running across the side before slowly pulling out the midnight blue blade that seemed to expel a murky black aura that I still found intimidating.

"Ren, what's up with you?" All eyes turned to the back to see the boy leaning against the wall, breathing heavily while Nora looked on worriedly.

"S-Sorry" He spluttered "I'm okay".

"Oh, it was nice to meet you, but I think it would be best if the rest of you got something to eat, Weiss and Mr Arc will join you soon." My father signalled for some nearby attendants to escort the rest of the teams along with a shaking Ren.

"Now" My father said once we were alone "Let's see that weapon in action, shall we?"

Ren POV

I tried my best to look well for Nora's sake but inside my head was spinning.

'_Why did I react like that?!' 'What is so special about that sword?'_

The two questions spurned around my head endlessly as I tried to figure it out.

I knew I had seen it, the dark aura-wielding blade, the sadness and pain it brought.

I had always felt an air of unease around the sword, but I had never had a reaction like that.

It was not the first time I had felt something like it, every time I woke up from the nightmares I had been having recently, I would feel the same. For some reason, it was especially bad when I saw Jaune and Blake together that night, I had felt so _angry_, I had no idea why.

It scared me.

Noir POV

"Well Mr Arc" The man on the throne chuckled as the attendants cleared what was left of the targets that were previously set up around the room. I saw that Weiss was silently proud, hoping that her father felt the same.

"I must say, that was quite impressive" I smiled at that before bowing to him.

"It is mostly thanks to your daughter, sir." The girl in question looked up, surprised at her mention. Her father seemed to pick up on it as well.

"Weiss, my dear, have you been assisting Mr Arc with training" He asked suspiciously.

"No- I mean well yes" She stuttered "We helped each other"

"Oh? And what did he teach you?" He asked, holding back a little anger.

I frowned. I didn't intend for this type of reaction.

"He taught me how to use my aura, and how to alter Myrtenaster's-"

"He did what?" The father interrupted.

"He taught me how to use it as a shield as well as an attack, not as well as you have seen him do but-"

"Weiss" He sternly interrupted once again. "Did you _forget _how much time was put into training you?"

"No, I-"

"You were trained as a Schnee Dust fighter, are you saying that you have forgotten just _who you are?!" _He boomed.

My eyes widened, not at the surge of anger from the father, but at myself. For a moment, I thought I had felt _anger _at the man for yelling at the heiress.

I pushed away the thoughts as I focused on the conversation.

"I'm sorry, father but-"

"Father? I'm sorry, only _Schnee _daughters have the right to say that. Now, leave me and try to learn who you are before you even _think _of showing your face here again" The father once again signaled for attendants as Weiss and I were 'politely excused' from the room, Weiss remaining silent all the while.

As soon as we were alone, I took a look at the now disheveled heiress, I saw a single tear coming from her eye and for once and as much as I hated to admit it, even to myself, I felt a tang of sincere sympathy. I attempted to put my arm around her but she simply walked away.

I mentally slapped myself for feeling sorry for the girl as she scurried away.

Weiss's Father POV

I sighed as I sat down onto the bed in my personal chamber,

_'I knew sending her away was a mistake' _I thought back to my regrettable decision of letting her attend the academy in order to hone her skills, I didn't remember, however, sending her to make friends and change herself to the extent of altering what had been so caringly taught to her since she was a child.

I felt angry at her, but also at the _Arc Boy _she was so taken with, I had always despised the Arcs, the only family name that held more respect than my own.

It was true that I was impressed by the boy's skill, his blade seemed to draw aura from the atmosphere around it to unleash it in a long range attack. It was true I had been impressed with the use of aura, though I still held Dust in highest regards when it came down to it.

Then I learnt that Weiss had also become interested in the art, even going as far as to request help in learning it from the boy. The thought itself made me cringe.

'_A Schnee asking for help to learn aura?' _It was unacceptable, a Schnee must be disciplined if they are to one day inherit the company!

A knock from my door brought me out of my musings as I called them in.

"My lord" The guard, Lowsley I believe, entered the room with a bow.

"Yes, what is it?" I asked, annoyed at the interruption.

"I was wondering where you had sent Rhonda, my lord, it is now her shift"

"Rhonda? I had sent her to check on the guests, she should have been back a long time ago"

"That's not the only thing, Marcus has also gone dark"

I sighed once again "Very well, have our new member, Oran, come here, she will suffice as a guard while you search for them"

"Oran, sir? Isn't she a bit inexperienced, after all, she only came here today."

"She came recommended by an old business partner" I remembered being sceptical of Junior when he had mentioned the huntress he deemed to be perfect for the guard.

A few minutes later, I heard a knock at the door as Lowsley opened it, revealing the new guard, clad in the usual blue jacket and pants with the dark blue helmet and small dust-infused knives. You could see the girl's orange hair poking out of the helmet as well as the odd red circles on her cheeks as she bowed at me.

"I will search for the others, Sir" Lowsley bowed once more before taking his leave.

I looked over the new guard scrutinizing her. '_What is so good about her to be specifically recommended?'_

"Alright, please take position outside of the door, Lowsley should be back shortly"

The guard didn't move.

"Didn't you hear me? I said-"I was interrupted as I heard something that sounded like… an explosion? It had come from the end of the hallway '_Lowsley!'_

"Guard, check on that at once!" I ordered.

She did make a move this time; however she instead took a step towards me.

"Guard! I order you to-"

I stopped talking as I felt something chilling come over me. I was confused before I looked down to see the dagger embedded in my chest, narrowly missing my heart, I couldn't revel in that fact for long though as the cold from the dust started to spread into my body.

I looked up to see the guard smiling as she turned to leave.

"Wh-Why?!" I demanded, my teeth chattering all the while as cold blood oozed from my mouth onto the carpet. I tried to stand, but faltered and fell at the feet of my attacker, I coughed up more blood on the crystal white floor as I tried to push myself up, only to find that my arms had completely frozen.

She smiled once more before turning to leave.

My head hit the stone cold floor with a resounding thud as I attempted to curl myself into a ball to stop the cold. I felt a searing pain through my head as I saw the blood leaking onto the floor around me, then the numbness hit.

The numbness was the worst; the pain had at least distracted me as I was lead to my fate but this was an odd sense of calm combined with the terrifying thought.

I was _dying! _

_'I can't die here… not yet!'_

I felt my eyes closing as I stopped shivering.

The last thing I saw was the most precious last sight I could have hoped for; I saw my heiress, my daughter, the hope of the Schnee. With that in my mind, I allowed my eyes to close.

_"FATHER!"_


	7. The Puppetmaster

Weiss POV

I let out another yell as the target fell to the crystal floor with a resounding thud.

Feeling something wet dripping down my face, I wiped my eyes.

_'How dare he?!' _I refilled the Dust as I took the familiar stance.

_'Had I forgotten who I was? How could I?'_

The air chilled as the target now stood encased in ice.

_'I've been constantly reminded who I was, how I should talk, how I should act'_

I thrust my rapier forward as the target was sent flying backwards, shattering against the far wall.

_'My status, all it has done has made me unapproachable and spiteful, those who were close to me were either killed to get at me or left to save themselves from things like the White Fang' _

I activated the correct compartment and found myself flying towards the target at inhuman speeds before slicing it, causing a diagonal slash mark across where the heart would be.

_'Is it so wrong that I would like to live for myself, even for a little bit?'_

I thought about the others, I had grown to like my team, hell even Ruby's childish antics had grown on me. I chuckled at that before _he _entered my mind once again.

It was not like I didn't _want _to think about Jaune, every time I did, I remembered his encouraging smile, his warmth, his blunt obliviousness…

_'After I graduate from Beacon, will it all have been for nothing?_

_Will I return to this?'_

I turned to see the nearby attendants and workers, they wore emotionless expressions, happiness, it seemed was forever lost to these people.

_'Will I have to become like that to be accepted by father?'_

That's when I decided, I would stand up to him.

I would stand up to my father, for the first time in my life.

With those thoughts encouraging me, I set off towards father's personal chamber.

* * *

I frowned at the unusual quiet that had settled in the area, I was usually greeted by several saluting guards by this point, yet the hallways were empty, I couldn't help but get a bad feeling as I quickened my pace.

I froze as I finally came across a guard, but this one was strange. It was short, even shorten than me, and it didn't salute so much as acknowledge me in any way as they passed right by.

I looked at the hallway the guard had come from and the sight almost made me faint.

Bodies… lifeless bodies were sprawled over the blood stained crystal floor.

Bodies of motionless guards, some were missing arms or legs like they had been in an explosion, others had their heads, as well as their helmets, completely caved in.

I was nearly sick.

I ran as fast as my legs would carry me, occasionally slipping on the wet crystal.

I soon came across the familiar red doors as I put my hand to the handle, but I stopped myself.

Did I want to see what was on the other side? My hesitance was cut short when I hear something from the other side of the door. The worry-ridden curiosity got too much for me as I barged in then.

That was the moment I shattered.

"FATHER!"

Noir POV

I smiled as I heard the shrill cry echo off of the walls, to me; it was like the bell sounding my victory. I then heard the gasps from the attendants who had come to the scene, then the quiet sob of the new head of the Schnee Dust Company being escorted to her room as she quietly sobbed.

Removing myself from my hiding spot, I headed over in the same direction.

It was time to seal the deal.

Weiss POV

Numb… I felt numb at that point. I could still feel the cold tears finding their way down my cheeks, I had stopped trying to wipe them away, every time, even more would spill out.

I had drained myself completely. I had thought that I was out of tears, had I not had enough?!

I stiffened as I hear a slow knock at the door.

I didn't respond as the door opened and I heard footsteps.

"Go" I said softly, turning away, the footsteps continued towards me.

"I told you to-"

"That's not happening" Jaune said as he sat next to me.

"J-Jaune… please, just-"

"No, I won't" I would normally retort to such a blunt decline but I didn't have the strength then. He moved closer to me and entwined his hand in mine. I looked up at him tearfully.

"Why did this happen, Jaune?" I asked quietly, resting my head on his shoulders.

"I don't know Weiss, sometimes you tend to forget that the grimm aren't the only evil in the world"

I remained quiet for a few seconds.

"Why _now? _He died without seeing where I would go, he could have seen me grow into a great huntress and a better person, I _wanted _him to see that!" I felt Jaune's grip tighten slightly as I continued.

"He… he died hating me, didn't he?"

I was surprised when Jaune brought me into a full embrace, holding my head over his right shoulder while keeping one hand on it and one hand on my back as he spoke softly.

"Weiss, I don't know why this happened, I don't know why it happened _now _of all times, I don't know how such evil can exist in the heart of humans, but I know one thing. No matter how he may have treated you or how he acted towards you, his last thoughts were of his beautiful daughter and how lucky he was to have you"

I couldn't hold it back any longer as I broke out into a sob as Jaune held me tight.

"Let it out, Weiss" his soft voice sounded over my wails and sobs as I too held him tight.

I didn't care how it looked for a Schnee to break down and cling to another, the one thing I was focused on was trying to get to Jaune's warmth.

"Remember that I will always be here, I will always be here for you" I pulled back slightly to meet his gaze.

The blue orbs that I had grown to love, the blond hair I had grown to adore.

"Can you promise me? That you will always be there?" I choked out.

The boy I would do anything for.

"Weiss,"

The boy who would do anything for me.

"It is my vow"

The boy I loved.

I couldn't hold back any longer as I reduced our distance, placing my lips to his in a searing kiss, I lingered for as long as I could, enjoying the warm sensation of his lips on mine as I piled every built up emotion into one moment.

When we pulled apart, we stared into each other's eyes yet again.

"Jaune, please, if only for tonight, be here for me" I pleaded.

He didn't hesitate as he brought me in for another lengthened kiss as he pushed me back against the tear-stained bed.

Jaune spent the rest of the night comforting me, whispering soft words as we shared our love. He was the only thing I could believe in anymore, the only one I could put all my trust into.

Blake POV

_'Will Master Noir get angry with me when I hand him my report?' _He had ordered me to document every event leading up to and resulting from the assassination and technically included in that was what he and Weiss did in her room.

I wasn't so sure he would appreciate the amount of detail I put into some parts, however.

Whilst slightly irked that my Master relieved his sexual urges with another when all he had to do was order me, I was happy that his plan had worked and that things were moving forward nicely.

Shipments of Dust could be making their way to the warehouse outside of Vale anytime soon, Junior had been busy, rounding up any willing gangs and mercenary groups while not revealing his employer. No, Master Noir wanted to make hiss grand reappearance once he had enough forces to move against Solus.

While Shinime and Dorei had been 'collecting' hunters and huntresses for the cause, their forces had been growing steadily. There were still three obstacles.

Torchwick, White Fang and Beacon.

Torchwick had recently been collaborating with some factions of the White Fang that could mess up Noir's plan, while Dorei suggested a brainwash, Noir had insisted on assassination, the man was apparently not at the top of the pile, seemingly being a middle man for some higher ups that I was still looking into and he was deemed useless for the cause.

Torchwick was Nora's mission, what she still lacked was a team to help that would be handpicked from the brainwashed hunters.

Because of my extensive knowledge and connections, I have been assigned to help with the White Fang and become its leader, as far as I was aware, the man in charge was now was a man named Shingetsu Okami, a wolf faunus that had climbed his way to the top with his outrageous ideals and deluded solutions for the faunus's strife.

Beacon was Noir's job, he was to work on the inside to learn about graduated students, incoming students, the school's protocol in case of national emergency, all while finding ways to completely destabilize the system as well.

I took one last glance into the Schnee's quarters to see the snowy haired girl clinging onto Master like a stuffed toy,

I found it quite ironic as in reality, she was the toy that he would play with to his heart's content.


	8. The Promise of a Good Show

Adam POV

She smiled at the crowd's shocked and angered expressions.

"Shingetsu really did that?" asked a downcast rabbit faunus.

The woman in the catsuit nodded.

"Shingetsu Okami has betrayed you all"

This caused uproar among the watching faunus.

"Bullshit!" a stocky lion faunus spoke up. "He would never sell us out, besides, how do we know you're telling the truth?" he exclaimed, provoking several murmurs of agreement.

The woman, who had called herself 'Blair' merely smirked at that before turning our attention towards the screen behind her.

"I think this may answer your question"

Several gasps arose from the crowd as the video clearly showed the wolf faunus we had grown to trust, except he was clearly speaking with Roman Torchwick, the man that had been giving a bad name by gathering rogue factions and using them for himself.

"Shingetsu Okami is a traitor to every loyal faunus in the White Fang" Blair continued.

"But there is no need to worry as there is someone else fit to be your leader"

This caught the crowd's attention as well as mine.

"Have any of you hear of the great Lord Noir?"

My eyes widened as I thought I would never hear that name again.

Lord Noir was the one who gathered up the largest rebel force in history to take down Prince Solus and stop his injustice. I hadn't been in the battle and I was shocked when they said that Noir had been KIA, but what could this woman be referring to?

"He is, as of now, resurrected" The crowd fell silent as we all tried to take that in.

"Noir is back?" I finally spoke up hopefully.

She nodded.

"Who?" One of the newer recruits asked.

"Lord Noir was the man that gathered an army of faunus and human alike to take down the tainted ruler of the land. He was stripped of his memories and was used for his powers but he has recently regained his mind and has been steadily growing stronger"

I couldn't help but smile at that, Noir was back, the one who could lead the faunus to a happier life. The crowd seemed to feel the same way, many hearing the legends of the man in the metal mask.

The newer recruits looked just as excited to know more about the resurrected hero.

The woman in the catsuit smiled triumphantly at that before extending an arm to us.

"I ask of you, join with Lord Noir and end the injustice. All hail the Will of Noir!"

The crowd boomed at that.

"ALL HAIL THE WILL OF NOIR!"

Ren POV

I gasped as I sat up in my bed, feeling cold sweat pouring down my face.

It had happened again, the dreams had been relentless, resulting in the same abrupt awakening every morning.

What was different this time was the absence of a concerned Nora, and for some reason, that unnerved me; I had noticed that I had become increasingly concerned about my orange haired friend recently.

For some reason I always felt like I wanted to be there to protect her, from what I didn't know, it was juts I lingering feeling that never seemed to rest

"Ren, you okay?" I turned to see the blond staring at me thoughtfully.

"You're still here? I would've thought you'd be across the hall by now" I joked, trying to drop the subject. Jaune chuckled at that.

"Weiss hates it when I wake her before 7:00, I know that from experience" I cringed as I remembered the demonic scream from across the hall and the black bruise that the boy had come back with.

Everyone had been surprised when Jaune and Weiss had announced their relationship, after _that day_, Jaune hadbeen spending a considerable amount of time with her, though we all thought it was just his kind nature.

I looked over to the empty bed to my right. Pyrrha had become quiet recently, I had inkling as to why, but I don't allow my mind to stray past mild speculation on the redhead's feelings towards our leader.

Ever since the announcement, she had gotten into the habit of waking before the rest of us for extra training, why she needed it was a mystery to me, although I was shocked when I heard that Jaune and her training had ceased. I suppose she didn't really feel necessary anymore with Weiss filling in.

"Hey Jaune?" I asked as the blond was getting ready for the day "Have you seen Nora?"

I couldn't help but notice a slight change in demeanour once I asked that, it was almost like had perked up, before looking thoughtful.

"Nah, she was gone before I woke up. I wouldn't worry though" He responded while exiting into the hall. "I'm sure she's just fine" As he said that, I could have sworn I saw a ghost of a smirk appear on his face, just for a second, before he disappeared into the hall, leaving me to my swirling thoughts.

Noir POV

I smiled as I headed down to the cafeteria, happily imagining the feisty little angel standing over a bruised and bloodied Roman Torchwick.

Dorei no me had insisted that I let her go alone, I chuckled

_'That bastard does love to show off, then again, it will be good to see how his pocket-size predator fares with this assassination, Roman always was a slippery one'_

Blake should have finished recruiting the White Fang by now, the fake footage was a little gift from Shinime to be used to take down Shingetsu Okami.

After Torchwick was accounted for, I was to either enslave Ozpin and humbly request that he lends me Beacon's fighting strength to take down Solus, or kill Ozpin and destroy Beacon altogether.

I couldn't help but sigh in disappointment as I conceded that the first option was probably the right one, '_I've always loved a big old calamity'_

"That will one day be your downfall, I'm afraid" I froze as I heard the familiar passive tone.

'_Risuna…'_ The fair haired teen looked at me with those dead, grey eyes and nodded.

"A lust for destruction will only lead to your own, as I recall, it already did once"

_'How would you know? You abandoned us to save your own skin' _I communicated internally as I once had with the teen slouched against the wall behind me.

"What you were doing was wrong" She got up from where she was leaning on the wall and approached me.

"It just took me a while to realise it"

I gritted my teeth as I recalled the treacherous test subject that could read minds by looking into a person's soul through their aura, unlike Shinime or Dorei no me, she never had to look into your eyes, a fact that I had always hated, my mask was not enough to veil my intentions with her.

She had been loyal up until I had ordered her to listen to the thoughts of the guard whose wife I had disposed of in order to make him talk, she had heard the man's pathetic pleas to bring his lover back and Risuna developed a foolish sense of pity for him. It wasn't long before she turned traitor and ran into the arms of the enemy.

"Greetings aside, there is someone that would like to meet you, follow me if you value your life" I tried not to laugh as the red dot appeared on my chest, aimed at my heart.

_'Do they really think one sniper will be enough to end me?'_

I smiled victoriously at the lack of a retort from the traitor leading me to the double doors that usually held detentions.

I pushed open the doors as I entered the room, the room was empty apart from the desk at the front that sat a woman wearing a fiery red dress and high heels, her luminescent yellow eyes cut through the murky darkness that filled every corner of the room.

"Cinder Fall, I presume?" She chuckled as Risuna closed the doors behind me.

"Now, now Noir, we shouldn't talk like strangers, after all, we both know just about everything about each other, now don't we?" I smiled as she was right.

I did indeed know all there was to know about the Crimson Witch, and with connections like hers, even information about me was easy to find,

"Quite right, now to what do I owe the pleasure?" I asked as respectfully as I could fake.

"The man may have been a pawn, but he was useful to us, Noir. I will commend you on your little hench-girl though, very impressive indeed taking him and his men down in a matter of a few swings of a hammer. Though she didn't expect the sleeping gas, no one ever does" She mused.

My eyes widened, _'They have her?!' _It could damage the already loose alliance between me and Dorei, I couldn't afford to lose his power.

"What do you want?" She chuckled once more as she got up and started taking steps towards me.

"What I always want, a good show" She grew a dreamy expression as she daintily stepped across the room. "A show so exquisite, they will remember it forever.

What could be better than the grand return of Lord Noir?"

I narrowed my eyes as I realised what she was doing. My preparations were far from complete, revealing my presence now would jeopardise the entire plan, then again, losing Dorei would hinder it greatly too.

"Come, now, you love it too" She closed our distance as she circled me, placing her hands coyly around my shoulders.

"Everyone gazing on at the man in the metal mask, in awe, in _fear" _She whispered in my ears with a sultry tone.

I let a dark smile grace my face as I laughed,

_'I can always alter my battle plan later, I too have somewhat of a flare for the dramatics as it is'_

"Well then, I've got a party to plan"

* * *

A/N Sorry for the breaks between updates, I'll try to keep them short from here on.

Also a shout out to destinyTail0 who featured a cameo of Noir in his story, JAUN, I highly recommend the fanfiction for the way it draws you in with its unique story and characters.


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